A peregrine falcon pair nested for the first time this spring in Kokomo --- bumping Indiana's peregrine nest total up to nine. Falcon couples also were seen near the Indiana State University campus in Terre Haute and the Indianapolis Power and Light Stout Power Plant on the southwest side of Indianapolis, but no nests were found.
Nesting occurred again in downtown Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, at five sites in industrial areas along Lake Michigan, and at a power plant in Jasper County. Twenty chicks were fledged from the nine nests. Ten other falcons with Indiana origins were reported in Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan, and Ontario.
Indiana's peregrine falcon restoration began with the release of 60 falcon chicks from 1991-1994 in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, South Bend, and Evansville. The DNR also built nest boxes in these cities.
More information on peregrine falcon restoration in Indiana is available at www.IN.gov/dnr/fishwild/nongame/falcon.htm
DNR biologists found nine new Hoosier bald eagle nests in 2001. A record 35 bald eagle nests were spread through 20 Indiana counties. Eagles laid eggs in 28 of these nests and 21 couples successfully produced 40 young eagles. Triplets were present at four nests, twins at 11 nests, and single eaglets hatched at six nests.
Notable range expansion occurred to the north, with new nests in Tippecanoe and Carroll counties. Indiana eagle range expanded east with the addition of nests in Bartholomew and Jackson counties.
The DNR reintroduced 73 bald eagles into Indiana between 1985 and 1989. A female eagle nesting this year along the White River in Morgan County had an orange wing tag, indicating she had been released at Lake Monroe. The female at a new nest in Morgan County had a green leg band, indicating an Indiana-hatched eagle from four to five years ago. An eagle breeding in Illinois near the Knox County line was also reported to have a green leg band.
More information on bald eagle restoration in Indiana is available at www.IN.gov/dnr/fishwild/nongame/eagle.htm
These restoration projects were funded by Indiana's state income tax checkoff for the Endangered Wildlife Fund.
